When World War II veterans list the programs that helped ease their homecoming after World War II, they're likely to mention the GI Bill.

That's because the Servicemen's Readjustment Act (as the policy was officially named), signed by Franklin Delano Roosevelt on June 22, 1944, delivered on the promise of America as a land of opportunity in a very concrete way.It provided a college scholarship to all those who served in uniform - whether they served on the beaches of Normandy or far away from the frontlines.

America must continue to make good on that promise to the veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and to others who serve.

When the original GI bill ended in 1956, almost half of the nation's 16 million veterans had either gone to college or received job training as a result of the legislation. The bill raised the standard of living for millions of Americans and helped create a robust middle class.

It is with a new generation of veterans in mind that the GI Bill is slated to get the biggest boost since its creation, But, unlike the original veterans education program, an Associated Press review of state-by-state benefits under the new bill, which goes into effect on Aug. 1, shows huge discrepancies in the amount veterans can receive.

Depending on where service members and veterans decide to attend college, they could receive full ride, or not much at all.

The new GI Bill covers full in-state undergraduate tuition and fees at any public college. In an effort to help veterans attend often pricier private colleges, the bill offers them an amount equal to tuition at the most expensive public college in the same state. It's a rule that penalizes veterans going to private colleges in states like Massachusetts that have kept their public university tuition low.

Veterans attending New Hampshire colleges like Dartmouth might get $25,000 from the government each year, thanks to an additional grant form the Ivy League school. But in Massachusetts - where many private schools are just as expensive as Dartmouth - the government's tuition baseline is only about $2,200 a year.

The intent of the original GI Bill was to provide uniform benefit to veterans. We think the new law should do that as well. We hope this discrepancy can be addressed.